A River In Shibuya
by stoneapple
Summary: The elders of the Otohata clan and Hoshino clan had made an arrangement a long time ago for the two families to unite. This can only be done once Rei Otohata marries Aya Hoshino.please review.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:** The setting of this story is fictional. I based the name of the setting from the original Shibuya, but that ends there. All the places in the story are all created by me since I am not familiar with Shibuya in Tokyo. I basically created a place where in my story will fit. So, to all those people who are familiar with Shibuya, please understand that this place in the story is not the Shibuya that you know. Thanks!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Gals nor its characters.**

**A River in Shibuya**

**Summary**: The elders of the Otohata clan and Hoshino clan had made an arrangement a long time ago for the two families to unite. This can only be done once Rei Otohata marries Aya Hoshino.

**Character Info:**

Aya is 19 years old and studying Architecture at **College of Arts and Sciences in** Tokyo University.

Rei is 20 years old and studying Economics at the Faculty of Economics also in Tokyo University.

**Chapter One: A River Divides Us**

A girl sitting on a bay window in her bedroom, looking at the city skylight while the sun is minutes away from setting. She is still recalling what had happened earlier that day.

" You are to be married to Rei Otohata, as what had been arranged by the elders. This arrangement had been agreed upon long before you were born. You will be married to Rei Otohata within 3 months time." Aya's father suddenly said to her after being called to his office right after she came home from school.

Aya, surprised at her father's sudden announcement, asked, " What do you mean to be married to Rei Otohata? And why am I not aware of this arrangement?" However, Aya suddenly stopped her questioning because the look that her father gave her already tells her that her questions will be answered in due time.

" Rei Otohata has already been informed by his father of this arrangement as we speak." Aya's father said and that ended their conversation.

**Back to Aya's room;**

" Why now when we already agreed that we no longer have to do anything with each other. I have finally given his freedom to pursue his love." Aya thought sadly.

**Flashback:** Aya and Rei were walking in a park and heading toward an old wooden bridge.

" There was an old legend about this bridge." Aya broke the long silence; " Legend said that Shibuya has so many underground rivers running from north to south, east from west. The people from the olden days never knew that there were rivers underground. One day, two very wealthy families started a quarrel among each other. Nobody knows the reason of this quarrel but it divided the people of Shibuya. Everybody claim that they were right and there was no end to their bickering. Then one day, as if the gods of the river have had enough of their quarrel, a very strong earthquake shook Shibuya and the underground rivers slowly began to rise. The rivers divided Shibuya and its people. The elders of the two quarreling families saw this as a sign of the angers of the gods and immediately made an oath never to quarrel again. No one knows what has been the agreement between the two, but the very next day the two families worked together to build bridges to connect the divided areas of Shibuya."

"Right now, we are standing at the middle of one of those bridges of Shibuya that was built by the two families."

"However Rei, I don't think I can continue crossing this river like the one in the legend." Aya trying hard to prevent her voice from wavering.

" What are you getting at, Aya?" Rei said a bit annoyed.

" I …I don't think I can continue crossing the bridge to get to you Rei." Aya said almost inaudibly. " No matter how many times I cross the bridge for you Rei, you'll never feel any affection for me. You can't even treat me as a friend, what more for a girlfriend."

Reid said nothing, but never looking at Aya's face.

" My heart is so tired yearning for you. Can't you see it Rei? I made a fool out of myself for you! I kept throwing myself at you even if I know you'll reject it. And you know what's worst, I let myself love you even though I know you love my friend."

Rei look at Aya, eyeing her in disbelief.

"Are you blaming me for your disposition/" Rei said harshly.

Hurt by his words, "No…I am to blame Rei," Aya said defeatedly. " for I know what I have gotten myself into. That's why I am ending whatever it is that we have. You don't have to worry about me bothering you, for I will be doing the avoiding...good-bye, Rei" Aya said while backing away from Rei.

"You think that you can end this just like that?" Rei called after her.

Aya turning around, " Saying good-bye to you Rei is the only way I could save the little dignity I have left for myself." And then she was gone, leaving Rei still stunned to what had happened.

**Back to Aya's Room:**

Aya still sitting on her bay window, twilight illuminates her dark hair, thinking to herself.

"Has it been only a month since I said goodbye to him? It seems that it was only yesterday.

They never saw each other since that fateful night. They have managed to avoid each other. Their friends never knew that they have broken up. They thought that they were just to pre-occupied with their studies that they haven't had any opportunities to meet. They were too oblivious that they haven't noticed the sadness in Aya's eyes.

"Oh fate, why are you so cruel to me. I have gambled all my strength to say good-bye to him, but you kept on bringing him back."

The sun already had sunk and darkness fell in the room.

"Tomorrow…I will see him again. What am I going to do? How am I going to face him again?"

Looking at her window, Aya saw the first star of the night.

" It is silly of me to still believe this, but it won't hurt to try." Aya said while silently making a wish.

**To the Otohata's Mansion:**

Rei Otohata is pacing back and forth at the middle of his father's office.

"What do you mean that I have to get married?! This is absurd! I am only 20 years old! And I certainly don't have any plans of marrying some stranger!" Rei crossly said to his father.

"Rei, don't make me loose my patience with you." Rei's father sternly said to him. "As I have mentioned earlier, this arrangement has been made long before you were born. You have been promised to the girl to unite the two powerful families in Shibuya. And besides, you can't back away. The elder's decision is iron clad!"

"I don't give a damn on what the elders have decided!" Rei countered. "Tell the elders that they can disown me all they like but I will never succumbed to their wishes!"

"And what about your mother?" Rei's father said solemnly to his son.

Bewildered that his father mentioned his mother.

"Do you think that your mother will be happy if her only son had been disinherited by the Otohata clan? Rei's father continued.

"Mom's dead, Dad." Rei said angrily. " Don't make her part of this fiasco!"

"Your mother has also been a part of this decision of you getting married to that girl!" Rei's father loosing his patience " She had met the girl, if you had to know, and she approves of her."

Silence filled the room. Rei contemplating his next move. His back to his father.

Rei thinking to himself:

How can my sweet and caring mother do this to me? How can she agreed to let me enter this union when she do well know that I will fight against it.

Rei knows that he can't let down his mother. He had promised to himself, before his mother died, that he will always honor her, whatever the cost.

Defeated, Rei said "Just so you know, I am not doing this for the elders, I am doing this for mother. I will marry that girl."

"You've made the right decision, son." Rei's father said triumphantly.

Rei, before exiting his father's office, "By the way dad, could you care to tell me who am I going to marry?"

"It's Hoshino…Aya Hoshino."

**End of Chapter I**


	2. Chapter II: Lend me your shoulder

**Chapter II: Lend me your shoulder for a while**

"Can you meet me tonight? At the park. You know where."

"Has something happened? Why so sudden? Why not I meet you tomorrow morning? It's already nearly midnight."

"I just need a friend right now."

"Alright. I'll be there in 20 mins."

"Thank you, Katase."

At the park, the air was chilly and she forgot her coat. There's a lot of things running through her mind and she felt she will burst if she don't talk to anyone what's bothering her.

"You forgot you coat again, Aya." Draping his own jacket to Aya's shoukder, Katase appeared behind her.

"Thanks Katase" looking up to him and smiled a small smile. "Why is it your always there for me? How many times you have come through for me?"

Katase just shrugged his shoulder and giving her a small smile too.

They continued their silence, but it was a comfortable silence. As if they understand what's each others feeling right now.

"Katase, if I ask you to take me away, will you do it for me?" Aya said, looking straight at Katase's bewildered eyes.

"What?!" said the shocked Katase.

"If I say please run away with me and never come back to this place, will you do it for me?" Aya said seriously.

"Aya, have you been drinking? What made you say those crazy things just now?"

"I'm not drunk and you know it! I'm serious." Aya said earnestly, "As my dear friend and the only one who understand what I feel, will you do this service for me?"

"Aya, you know I would say yes to all your requests, however, what you've asked is beyond what I can do." Katase said taking in the seriousness in Aya's voice, knowing that she is not joking." Care to explain what had brought this predicament? Why all of a sudden you asked me to take you away."

"I am getting married to Rei Otohata as an order from the Hoshino clan." Aya looking away from Katase's face.

Silence.

Katase, looking up at the moon, contemplating Aya's situation, as if the moon will give him the right answers. Sighing, Katase begun " You know Aya, if I take you away, we will only be running away from the problem, but it won't solve anything and will only cause more wounds."

"I would love to take you away, you know I would if I could. However, it won't be right."

Aya crumpled to the gound, sobbing and defeated. " I …I was just starting to forget him! I can't do it, Katase!" Aya's tears uncontrollably flowing. "My heart..it hurts so much…so much," Aya cried inaudibly.

Katase is hurting too. He never wanted to see Aya like this, so helpless and he can't do anything.

"Katase, would you lend me your shoulder for a while."

Katase nodded. With this, he is content for he knows this is the only thing that he can do for Aya.

She then laid her head to Katase's shoulder. They stayed like that till the sun rose.

**End of Chapter II**


	3. Chapter III:Guess who’s coming to dinner

**Chapter III: Guess who's coming to dinner**

The whole clan of Hoshino and Otohata were very pleased of the whole engagement. They had been waiting for the two clans to be united ever since they could remember, and this was the only time that there were given a chance to do it. This was the only time that a boy from one clan and a girl from the other, of nearly the same age, were born to them. Usually, it was either boys or both girls at the same time.

Rei Otohata, being the eldest male heir of his generation gets to be married to the sole female heir of the Hoshino clan, Aya Hoshino. All Rei's cousins are far too young to get married and much younger than Aya. Aya's cousins are all male, so naturally, she is the only one who can marry Rei Otohata.

This engagement had been insufferable for the two victims of the clan, but there was nothing they could do. Everything was already set in stone.

**Mirror, mirror, on the wall…**

The girl in the mirror was looking back at her, but she could hardly recognize her. That girl was exquisitely wearing the finest, azure, silk organza, strapless evening dress. Her hair was pulled back in a low chignon, with a full bloom gardenia tucked demurely at one side. Her face was luminous, with only a hint of blush. Her lips, so soft looking, with the palest berry colour. The only jewelry she was wearing was a small, 1920s drop sapphire earrings.

Nobody can deny that she is the most beautiful girl anybody could ever possibly behold, however, her eyes betrayed everything. She has the saddest eyes anyone could see.

**On the other side of Shibuya...**

A boy looking out from his bedroom window, counting down the hours. He has been preparing himself for this night, ever since he found out who his betrothed is. As usual, he had his cold mask on.

"We will see what will happen tonight, Aya Hoshino." Rei thinking to himself, a frown slowly creasing on his forehead, far from his usual calm collected self.

**And so dinner begins…**

Aya secluded herself from the people inside the gathering hall of the Shibuya's country club. She had been staying on one of its balconies, hidden by the floor to ceiling curtains. She doesn't' want to face the people inside, well not yet at the moment.

She's been contemplating which hurts more, jumping from the second floor balcony and suffer a few broken bones, thus postponing the engagement party, or feeding herself to the sharks inside the hall. Sooner or later she has to face them.

"I think I will stay here for a while until they call me up." Aya said to herself while trying to enjoy the starlit night.

**Meanwhile…**

"Who is that Juliet on that balcony yonder!" Trying to sound Shakespearean, Ken Otohata said to his stoic cousin, Rei Otohata. " I didn't know that a beauty like her still exist." Ken continued, oblivious to the fact that he had just complimented his cousin's fiancé.

The two were already running late and made a short cut from the country club's back entry where anyone can see the whole country club building, thus giving them the full view of the gathering on the second floor.

Rei Otohata looked up and unexpectedly heard his heart give a sharp thump! He had forgotten how beautiful Aya was. Sure he never paid attention to her beauty before, but this had caught him off guard.

Above the balcony, the moonshine showered Aya, making her look like an angel descended from heaven. Her eyes twinkling like the brightest star and her dark hair like the starless night.

After a few heart stopping moment, he smothered the feeling as quickly as it came. He can't let himself be affected by her appearance. There are so much more important things than beauty alone.

He then brusquely dragged his younger cousin inside, stopping him from staring at his supposed fiancé.

**Inside…**

Laughter and greetings echoed from the ballroom. Everybody was very enthusiastic on the upcoming union. However, laughter that can be heard from the ballroom was like a stabbing knife on Aya's nerves.

She had been on the balcony for nearly an hour now, but her nerves still hasn't clamed down.

She heard that Rei already arrived with his cousin and were talking to her father. She wondered what were they talking about.

Being cornered by Aya's father wasn't exactly Rei's cup of tea. He had been listening to Aya's old man for the past 15 minutes. He heard something about Aya being lucky to marry such a fine young man, making both clans proud, having to take responsibility, etc. These were all muddled to him. He just wants to get away, fast. He was about to step away when his grandfather and Aya's grandfather stepped on the platform making the announcement that the engagement ceremony was about to start.

"Here we go." Rei muttered to himself.

**Fetching the bride to be…**

"I thought I might find you here, hiding." Aya's mother said to her daughter. "It's time."

"Mother…have you…" Aya tentatively began. "have you ever regretted that you have married father? You two where also in an arranged marriage, right? Have you ever thought that you made a mistake and you have missed out on marrying your true love?

Aya's mother looked at her daughter lovingly and tenderly said "Aya, your father is my true love. Yes, we have an arranged marriage, but when I met him I knew he was the one for me. I never regretted any moments of my marriage and I don't think I missed my chance on true love."

"Why Aya, are you worried that you think Rei might not be your true love?" Aya's mother implored.

Aya just shook her head and smiled a little.

"No..I'm worried I am preventing him from marrying his true love." Aya said to herself sadly.

"Come now, everybody is waiting inside." Aya's mother said, guiding her daughter inside.

**We present you the bride and groom…**

**To be continued…**


End file.
